1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a portable terminal apparatus represented by a portable telephone device having at least one display section.
2. Description of the Related Art
Significant advances have been made recently in the technology of portable terminals represented typically by portable or mobile telephones, making available a variety of functions such as the Internet connection, game software downloading and execution, etc. Efforts have been made towards providing color images and larger screens.
Nevertheless, there are limits to providing larger screens inasmuch as increasingly smaller size and lightweight are required of a portable (or, mobile) terminal apparatus. There is simply no comparison to a display unit of a personal computer.
On the other hand, even in a mobile telephone, it has become possible to prepare an e-mail, have access thereto or to Web information, and even so far as to execute games and the like. In regard to such use of various application programs, the size of a display area leaves room for improvement.
Particularly, in many existing mobile telephone devices, which are mobile or portable terminal devices having communications functions, their display area is separated in strips on an upper portion and a lower portion of the display area, which show data related to remaining battery level, service area/no service area, signal strength indication (for example, number of indicative bars), a guide to key operations (key operation information) and other information. What has brought about is that the available display area is being increasingly compressed. These circumstances may cause a mobile telephone having a small screen to be less attractive to users seeking larger screen size, with the consequence of decreasing market competitiveness of the product.
Now, there is currently available a new model of mobile telephone device, particularly of a folding type, which is designed so as to enable the user to look at predetermined information through a relatively small auxiliary or sub-display section provided on the outside of its cover. Yet, when the cover of such mobile telephone is opened, only the main display section appears for viewing with the sub display section becomes unavailable for view. On the other hand, the applicant of the present invention has proposed, in Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2001-172164, a mobile telephone terminal equipped with a sub display section so constructed as to enable the user to view and confirm in either status of the cover being flipped open/closed or the cover being shut.
In this manner, efforts are made in the conventional mobile terminal apparatus, particularly mobile telephone devices, to expand its display area. Nonetheless, its expansion is not without limits, and appropriate measures are required so as to make effective use of the limited available display area.